By Mark Edward Nero
The Northwest Seaport Alliance, a marine cargo operating partnership of the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, said Dec. 16 that it saw its container volumes improve six percent year to date in November, marking its ninth consecutive month of growth.
Containerized exports improved 11 percent year to date to 1,209,562 TEUs on the strength of Washington state’s agricultural sector. The state is home to one of the most productive growing regions in the world, and Seaport Alliance terminals provide simple access to markets overseas.
Containerized imports rose five percent year to date to 1.32 million TEUs, while domestic volumes remained flat at 807,009 TEUs. Through the first 11 months of the year, the NWSA has handled 3,339,057 TEUs, according to data from the ports.
In the month of November, the ports moved a reported total of 283,945 TEUs, compared to 240,578 units during the same month last year, an 18 percent jump.
Among the reasons for the increase was that November 2014 marked the beginning of the West Coast port disruptions during contract negotiations between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association.
The ports also reported that auto imports continued to be strong in November and were up seven percent year to date to 168,893 units.
Detailed information about the ports’ current and historical volumes can be seen at https://www.nwseaportalliance.com/sites/default/files/November2015-ContainerVolumes.pdf.
